Clarification

Ethan and Beckham were putting dishes away today, when Beckham decided to start sword fighting with the steak knives.  Because I was facing the sink I didn't see this and Ethan told me that I should get mad at Beckham for being so dangerous.

I turned around and told Becks that he could never play with knives, and for the scare factor I told him that if he ever took a knife to school they would throw him in jail.

Ethan reinforced that by telling him I was right.  And then he thought for a second and said, "Unless you are a sword performer doing tricks for an assembly at school.  Then it's ok."


Beckham got a great big Lego set for Christmas.  Kerry told him he was doing such a great job - in fact, the box says that it's for kids 7 and above, and Becks is only 6.  Beckham irritated says to him, "Don't you mean, 7 and UP?"

Bon Voyage!

Kerry received some parting words from Beckham just before he left for the airport the other day....

"Dad - Have fun.  I hope your airplane doesn't get shot down.  And I hope it doesn't self destruct while your up in the sky."

Warm fuzzies from the mouth of babes.

Oh blog, how I've (sort of) missed you....

I think I'm ready to get back in the proverbial blogging saddle again....
I needed a break, and a break I took.  But I love being able to look back and see the things the kiddos are up to, and I absolutely don't trust my memory to recall half of what goes on.   So here goes the old college try......

Narration of family photos by Becks.

Beckham is home sick from school today, so I pulled up some of our family pictures through the apple tv to keep him entertained.  The slideshow that was playing was of the first day of our family vacation in California last month.  

He decided to narrate a few of the photos for me, and I wanted to share what he said.  But before I do, just note that Nacho Libre is one of his favorite movies and the boys are constantly quoting it, especially when I make corn for dinner.  Without fail, they repeat in their best Mexican accent

"Hey Mom, save me some of that corn for later."

And now on to Beck's narration:

"Hey Pirates!  Save me some of that gold for later!"

"Hey Pelican!  Save me some of that fish for later!"

"Hey Ethan!  Save me some of that ugliness for later! "

"Hey Ocean!  Save me some of that mist for later!"
(I didn't realize he knew the word "mist" 'til today)

Beckham told me tonight that he loves me more than an old lady loves chicken.

Wow! I think that's a lot.

Hey Everyone.....

PLEASE PRAY FOR RAIN!   


hahahahahha..     I'm so funny :)


Seriously rain, you are making me crazy.  Please leave.  Today. 

Legos and Self Expression.

Ethan has always been very vocal about his feelings.  Many times he feels like life is very unfair to him and he will let you know, in one way or another.  I can definitely say he is not passive aggressive.  He'll tell you straight out what he is frustrated with and many times guilt you into his logic. 

 Well.....

yesterday he was an unhappy camper.  After spending time with him all day at his field trip, he came home grounded from all "electronic devices."  The field trip was great until the end when he slammed into a girl and refused to understand why "you don't hit girls", even when they are the one who started it.  Life's unfair, little Dude.  And that happens to be one of the many things he'll need to learn.  

So to make a long story short, I took away his lifeblood video games.  Indefinitely.   This was a source of much anger and he was telling me why.  He came home, went down to his room, and didn't surface for a while.  I went down and talked to him and when I came back, he was sound asleep.  Ahhh.  All tuckered out.  They look so sweet and innocent when they wear themselves out and are slumbering away.

But no...

I peeked into his room and saw this creation along his window sill:

I didn't know if I should laugh or cry.  I told him later that "it is very inappropriate to say things like that and very disrespectful".  However in my mind I wanted to add, "But I really like your artistic take on the matter.  Very impressive!"

As I was tucking him in bed last night, I talked to him again. "You know, that wasn't a very nice thing to say to your mother.  It's pretty neat that you can make letters like that out of Legos, and you are really creative, I'll give you that.  But when God gives us talents, we can either use them for good or use them for evil.  I hope you learn how to use your talents for something better."

This morning he spent some time in his room before leaving for school.  I went downstairs and found this waiting for his friend that was coming home to play with him after school for the first time:

Much Better, Lil' Dude.

Ninja's in Training...

Becks buddy Danny is the one whose eyes you can see.  Beckham is a little more covert apparently, adding tape to cover his eyes.  I wonder if he realizes that could be problematic once he has to start looking for the bad guys...

Deep Thoughts....by Dooders, Becks, and Eva

At breakfast today, in between bites of toast and a pre-test, Ethan said to me out of nowhere, "Mom, it really isn't a good idea to trick astronauts.  Because if you tricked them and told them the wrong time, they wouldn't be able to make it to their rocket before it left.  And it might be a long time before we send up another rocket."


Earlier this week:
Beckham had his kindergarten round-up at his new "big kid" school.  After it ended, most of the people had left the cafeteria, but I stayed to talk to the principal for a minute.  We got talking and apparently Becks was ready to go.  He came over to me, puts both hands up in the air like he just can't believe he is having to deal with this, and says to me in his most incredulous voice, "WELL!  I GUESS YOU'RE WALKING HOME!"  and with that, he turned and walked out of the room without even waiting to see my reaction.  I think he was mid-hall when he realized that 
1: he didn't have the keys to the car, and 
2: he didn't have a driver's license and wasn't going to have access to one for a while.


And yesterday:
Eva has convinced her mommy to let her get acrylic nails.  Seriously, really?  I found out many years ago that I had to be very very picky with my battles that I chose with her.  It just wasn't worth the destruction to the relationship unless it was going to make a difference.  So, after trying to talk her out of getting the nails for the last 2 weeks, I finally relented. I could see that this was a big, huge, deal to her. All of her friends at school have them - and that is the truth.  I watched, almost laughing out loud, as her friend was talking to me and was gesturing glamorously with her acrylicly- clad, french manicured fingernails while she was explaining what to do on her homework.  These girls are 11.
Eva has to pay for them herself, so I'm hoping that she will see the work required to maintain them and get it out of her system for a decade or so.


These are the deep thoughts going through my children's heads this week.  Love them!

Gooooood morning, Sunshine!

This post is coming to you from my phone, in my bed, at home, after 12 hours of sleep. 12 hours! Life is good. Just had to relish in the moment because it may be some time before I am able to partake of this much shut-eye again.

According to Becks...

Beckham and Kerry went to Home Depot yesterday while doing some man work in the yard. (I was off recreating...suckers! But I digress..
So Kerry tells the Becks that they need to get some fertilizer and some tree pruners.  Becks says matter of factly, "Loppers".
"What?" asks Kerry.   "Loppers." repeats Becks.
"Fine - we can call them Loppers but you just be in charge of reminding me to get them."
 As they walk down the aisle to get the tree cutters, Kerry notices the sign in front of the tree cutters that says, of course, "Loppers".
"Becks - how did you know they were called Loppers?"
His response was that he learned about it on Curious George.  Who knew!  I wonder if Curious George could teach him how to clean his room and do windows?  I'm going to write in to the producer...

Some other Beckisms lately:
Frustrated with his older brother, Becks asked if we "could ground Ethan forever".  After I told him no, he asked me if we couldn't do that, if we would just kick him out of the family.

A few nights back we put all the kids to bed in the basement.  Kerry and I were watching tv and heard the telling steps of a little 5 year old coming up the stairs.  We asked why he was upstairs and not in bed.  He says to us with a big sigh, "Well, it's not really working out for me down there."

And just so you know, Beckham informed me that "It's not called a 'mango', mom.  It's a 'flamango', but you can call it a mango if you like."

You wanna piece-a-me?

We are dealing with a few bullying issues....how do you handle them as a parent? I am confident that this will be taken care of, and it is not extreme, but it is hurtful nonetheless.   Part of you wants to jump in to save your child and the other wants to beat up the bully(s) yourself (but that may require jail time) and the other part of you knows you need to teach your child to stand up for themselves and to learn the artful skill of diffusing the situation.
This particular situation involved toilet papering personal property at school.  We gave all sorts of advice, but really we were laughing by the end.  We came up with some funny comebacks....none that were actually appropriate outside of our kitchen table.  Just to share, I told our child, "Why don't you ask them if they would like any of this toilet paper back so that they can wipe their buttface?"
Good, eh?  Fantastic parenting at its finest!
I'm here all week, folks.

Oh No He Didn't!!

(Pronounced: o no you dit-ten) A colloquial expression of incredulity, voiced upon witnessing another's action or statement.


In the car today:
Beckham:  Mom - Watch!  I can put this lid back on by myself.
Me:  Why don't you give it to me so I can put it on tight for you.
Beckham:  Mom.  I can do it by myself.  You probably can't do it because YOU'RE A WOMAN.

Nothing, Nothing, and then all the sudden...BOOM! Extra long post..

No pictures.  Lot's of words.  This post was my own personal challenge.  I said to my self, "Self, just see if you can post *something*, ANYTHING really, to keep your blog going.  It doesn't really matter, just break the long silence.

I really need to post all the kiddos things that are going on, our fun cruise we were able to do, other trips from last year that were supposed to be blogged, and life's going ons that really only me and my family and doting aunts and uncles care about.  But sometimes it seems like a lot of work to retell life.....  I wish there were a way to record it as it was happening.  I will get to it - that is my next goal.  Until then, these are a few random and completely unrelated things taking up space in my noggin:

I realized the circle of life once again yesterday while doing my kiddos hair.  Instead of them standing on the stool in the bathroom so I could do their hair, the person standing on the stool was ME.  I couldn't get my hands high enough above Eva's head to curl her hair, so I stood on the stool.  All 5'4'' of me.  Weird.  My kids are getting older and taller and I am just getting older.

I also noticed as I looked in my cupboards that, because my kids are getting older,  I am close to getting rid of those awful plastic colorful plates that I picked up at the dollar store years ago.  They are the ones  we use for the kids and their friends.  "How fun!" I thought, as I picked out all different colors.  What it really turned out to be over the years was a fight every time between siblings and friends as to who got what color, and many times tears were involved.  Lesson learned:  Only by 1 color.

I made a killer dinner last night.  Curry shrimp and sweet potatoes.  Let it be known that occasionally Makell can pull one out of her bag of tricks.

I have a new life strategy that my friend Kristin and I came up with.  If we get our chores done, we get to play the next day.  Treating ourselves like we were 7 really worked!  We both had projects around the house we were just dreading or procrastinating.  Organizing a room, cleaning a certain area, etc.  Things that I used to not mind doing just seemed so boring and I had absolutely no desire to just get it done.  Everyday things get done, but anything that can be put off, usually does.  A day turns into a week turns into a month or maybe 12.  We both stated our project for the day and then if we finished we would reward ourself the next day.  Having to be accountable to each other and knowing that you would have to answer when you are asked how it is coming along is what I need.   A lunch and a quick trip to Z Gallery did the trick.  Today, it is cleaning off my dumping ground that is the basement ping pong table and organizing that area.  Tomorrow - play time~!  It totally works - anyone is invited to join if you need a little motivation.  We hit the Whole Foods store, lunch, furniture shopping....it doesn't take much to get your butt in gear with a little self bribery..


Over the past month I have read some really fantastic books.  It's either feast or famine with reading and lately I've been able to fit it in like I always wish I would.
One of my new favorites and what reminded me of why I love to read:  The Forgotten Garden, by Kate Morton.  A mystery with 3 generations of women that goes back and forth between these different time periods.  I loved this book.  I find that I start to read slower as I get to the end of a favorite book.  The thought of not seeing what was going to happen next to the new character that has become my new best friend makes me not want to get to the end.  This will be a re-read.

Another find:  Sarah, by Orson Scott Card.  This one took me by surprise.  I generally stay away from church fiction books - they all seem so cheesy to me.  ( I know that is a bias, there are some really good ones out there..)  But this was truly fascinating, because you already know the story and how it ends and the author fills in all of the details that bring it to life.  I have the sequal - Rebekah that will be on my next list.

A book I picked up at the airport leaving for the cruise:  Little Bee.  Not sure about this one.  It was eye opening and horrific and charming at the same time.  There is one chapter in particular that was extremely hard to read and I don't know if I'll ever be able to get that out of my head.  At the end of the cruise I started reading "Water for Elephants".  I'm still getting into that one.

And finally, two books given to me by a new friend and favorite person of many, a skier extraordinare and a genuinely smart and funny woman affectionately known as Rabid.   We swapped books last time we skied, and she gave me a book that is a quick read that she thought I'd enjoy.  It is written from a runner's perspective as she braves life alone as a new widowed young mother.  "The Mourning Run" It was written by a local author and I literally balled all the way through it.  Yes, hormones played into it, but still.  I had puffy eyes and had to read it all in one day, because I couldn't have 2 days in a row with puffy eyes.  It is based on a true story and a great read.
This same friend sent me a words of wisdom book as a gift in the mail after a good conversation we had.    Incredible.  Words to live by.
"The Four Agreements" by Don Miguel Ruiz.  Lovely and Transforming.

This is why you can consider yourself lucky if you are blessed to have good friends.  To help you get to be the person that you are supposed to be, not the person that you would be from your own self-destructive ways if left on your own.... or unproductive ways, or boring ways, or sit home and do nothing ways...  Many of you out there are these friends & sisters to me, and for that I am eternally grateful.

Inept.

I went in to volunteer in Ethan's class today expecting to do math.  But when I walked in, his awesome teacher who I would do almost anything for, asked me to help her by putting up some bulletin boards. I wonder if she saw the color completely run out of my face as I said, "Sure!"   I truly am inept when it comes to this.  Long swathes of butcher paper, measuring lengths whilst standing on a chair in the hall, trying to hold the stapler and scissors at the same time....and then to have to make it look cute!  So not in my skill set.  If you want it to look like you asked a student to do it, then have me do it.  If you want it to look 'pulled together', well, you may want to wait for another mom to come in tomorrow.  It ain't gonna be pretty.

Girls Already. Heaven help us.

Beckham's preschool teacher told me today that Beckham said he loves his mom's long hair (random!) and then she said that everyone in class knows that Beckham and Ava are together.  As in, they 'like' each other.  I asked Becks what that meant.  He said it's like when someone asks you to do a favor for them and you say yes because they are your friend.  Ok.  That works for me right now.
 I should have been on to this, because a few months ago Beckham came home with her phone number.  The little dude is getting girls' numbers already!  He told me to call her and then we could just go pick her up and bring her to our house to play.  He said she could play with Eva's dolls and that I would know which house was hers because it has a black door and it is just down the street 'that way' as he pointed in some obscure direction.
They are 5!
In a conversation with his buddy Danny this week I found out just how much they hear their older siblings.  While playing with trains Danny asks Becks, "Do you like Miley Cyrus?" (now just imagine that this little buddy of his can sometimes not say his 'r's, so it's extra cute)  Becks says, "No.  I like Demi Lavato."  Danny asks, "Who's Demi Lavato?" to which Becks replies, "She sings better than Miley Cyrus."  Danny, not quite convinced yet, asks totally matter of fact, "Well, is she hot?"
 I think Becks just mumbled that he didn't know but that she could sing.  Danny seemed content with that answer and the went on playing trains.  Danny also has a 15 year old older brother - can you tell?

My little secret..

I guess you could say I'm in a bit of a blogging slump right now.  Life is moving and grooving and things are busy and fun and chaotic and happening.  Just like they should be.  The problem is that I can't seem to get the desire to right them down.  It's like making someone eat cabbage soup again after the 7th day of the wretched diet.  I. Just. Can't. Do it.  Bottom line, I can't seem to find the desire.  However, I'm coming to realize that there may never be a time where I am caught up on family albums or kids journals, and that is why I am so glad to have written a lot down in posts. That  is until the last 6 months or so, when it gradually became less.  And less. And less - it's like a slow death.  

Well No More!  I need to start somewhere, so why not start with a little secret of mine?  Just to break the ice and end the blogging slump.

I. Love. Chocolate.  That is not the secret....

The secret is that for the past year or so I have continually kept one of these chili pepper-infused-dark chocolate-maddening goodness-Lindt bars by the side of my bed, inside my nightstand, for immediate access, where no kids will touch it, allowing me to nibble from any time I want.  And I go through a lot of them. 

If I had to choose something for the rest of my chocolate eating days, it might be this.  Seriously addicting.  Auntie and I snuck them in to Wicked and Chicago in NY to eat during the show.  I managed to get my Vegas Ragnar buddies all hooked. (antioxidents!)  And I'm wondering if anyone else out there has become addicted.  

The only person I know who doesn't like them is my 6th grade long time bff Lori, who told me they were disgusting when I offered one to her at Women's conference a couple of years ago.   This is the same friend of mine, who in junior high went to a Utah football game with me and my dad and was the only one who didn't have a pile of sunflower shells at the bottom of her feet, because she didn't know you weren't supposed to eat the things whole.  Also the same girl who shaved off her bangs with a razor in 6th grade because she thought that would get rid of them for good.   I think I've proven my point. 

This is also the same girl who served a mission in Argentina,  speaks fluent Spanish, traveled through Europe and Jerusalem, got her degree at BYU, taught high school English in Virginia, knows how to get what she wants, and has a beautiful brood of 5 that all follow after her and call her mom all day and she does a spankin' job of it.  But that last part isn't really helping my case much, so just remember her as the sunflower seed shell girl and try the chili pepper Lindt...